A weekly thread about the past
It’s only human to wonder how things might have gone differently. And historians, or history buffs, have spent an inordinate amount of time wondering how events from the distant past might have differed. From fictional works like The Man in … Continue reading The Alternate History Thread
As I’ve mentioned in some of the past History threads, I’ve been doing a dive into some of the design aesthetics catalogued by folks at the Consumer Aesthetics Research Institute (CARI). While I’m currently just coming out of the 70’s … Continue reading The 00’s Aesthetic History Thread
It’s almost the end of another year. As America’s existential crisis continues and a pandemic rages across the world history can be, well, not always comforting but at the very least a welcome distraction from the horrors of our day-to-day … Continue reading The Year-End History Thread
What could history possibly matter to someone who is forced to relive the same month of their life, over and over again? For those of us who haven’t contracted with an alien ferret, though, it remains a source of endless … Continue reading The Homura History Thread
Eleftherios Venizelos had a vision for Greece. As young man on Crete, he had led a rebellion against its Turkish rulers in 1897, triggering British intervention and the island’s union with Greece. As Foreign Minister in the 1910s, he engineered … Continue reading History Thread: The Glass General and the Burning City
Braddon, Russell. The Siege: The Full, Horrifying Account of the Kut Disaster. New York: Viking Press, 1970. Originally published 1969. 352 pp. Some wars are so ill-conceived and badly-waged that even when successful, they seem a colossal waste. The Crimean War fascinates me … Continue reading History Thread: Russell Braddon’s The Siege (1969)
One of the key components to the success of the Vikings during the Viking Age was the ship. And the greatest innovation of the Viking ship, beyond the shallow draught or the clinker construction, was the sail. Sails first appeared … Continue reading The History Thread is Invaded by Vikings
From the beginning of his political career, Richard Nixon dodged accusations of financial impropriety. In 1950, hostile reporters claimed that notorious mobster Mickey Cohen donated to his Senate race against Helen Gahagan Douglas. His infamous Checkers Speech of 1952, while … Continue reading History Thread: Nixon Cash
For a few weeks every fall, American consumers are inundated with ads for a primal horror escaped from the bowels of McDonald’s: the McRib. This sandwich consists of ground, processed pork shoulder enticingly repackaged into a vaguely rib-shaped lump, slathered … Continue reading The History Thread Ponders the McRib
Sadly, I’m putting all my creative time and effort into anime writing right now, so I didn’t have time for a proper header this week. What else is new? Discuss whatever historical is going on in your world this week. Continue reading The Distraction History Thread
Today is the 140th anniversary of the Gunfight at the OK Corral, the most famous shootout in the history of the American West. The main reason it’s so remarkable as that this kind of stand-up gunfight was exceedingly rare in … Continue reading The OK Corral History Thread
The History Thread is late this week. Late late late, for a most unimportant date. If you still have a history jones to satisfy this week, join the conversation. Continue reading Late History Thread
When Germans living the Weimar Republic weren’t battling unemployment, rampant inflation or dodging street battles between political extremists, they shuddered at stories of killers in their midst. German newspapers burst with accounts of monsters disguised as respected citizens. Peter Kürten, … Continue reading History Thread: The Serienmörder Who Never Was
Beware the Tatzelwurm! This curious critter supposedly inhabits the mountainous regions of central Europe, especially the Alps in Bavaria and Switzerland. It’s known to prey on livestock and generally make a ferocious nuisance of itself. Descriptions of the Tatzelwurm vary: … Continue reading The Wormy History Thread
Historians generally don’t have much nice to say about Andrew Johnson. The 17th President, who succeeded to office after Abraham Lincoln’s assassination, had a chance to heal the nation recently divided by civil war and end or at least ameliorate … Continue reading History Thread: Vampire of Liberty
From 1859 to 1872, the United States and the United Kingdom were technically in a low-grade conflict sparked by a dispute over a pig. Both nations claimed the island of San Juan, in the Salish Sea, between Vancouver on one … Continue reading The History Thread Fights the Pig War
Outside the town of Bures in Suffolk, a unique geoglyph can be glimpsed on the hills. The Bures Dragon commemorates a bizarre local legend about a rampaging reptile which scourged the town sometime in the Middle Ages. It’s a great … Continue reading History Thread: A Brief History of the Bures Dragon
Today is a baleful anniversary for animal lovers: the death of Benjamin, the last known Thylacine (Tasmanian tiger) in 1933. Once endemic to Tasmania, this carnivorous marsupial was considered a nuisance for feasting on livestock and subject to massive overhunting. … Continue reading The History Thread Goes Extinct
Welcome back to the History Thread! My head is still in Civil War land, as I’m rereading Bruce Catton’s Army of the Potomac Trilogy alongside Leon Litwack’s brilliant Been in the Storm So Long: The Aftermath of Slavery. Additionally, my … Continue reading The History Thread Soldiers On
Thanks to Dave and Colm for filling in while I was preparing for/on vacation. I will share some pics in the comments below, but I wanted to draw your attention first to this most awesome of battle flags. In keeping … Continue reading The History Thread Sticks it to the Secesh
In 1880, the wider world came to the Kerry market town of Listowel with the arrival of the Limerick & Kerry Railway. Immediately thereafter, with the promise of easier access to education, a boost to tourism and a market for … Continue reading The History Thread Rides a Genuine, Bonafide, Steam-Powered Irish Monorail
